crafties

I've been doing some knitting. This cap (still needs to have the ends woven in and ties added, but let's call it finished just for now) was one of those troubled projects... first, I had to do all sorts of fancy math to get the gauge right. Then, I made a mistake and decided to start over (but that happened all of 15 rows into it, so it wasn't such a grave loss). Then I made another mistake later that required some really focused thinking to figure out how to repair. Then I took the whole project to San Diego with me, only to discover that one of my double-pointed needles was missing. Once I found that needle (after some semi-desperate searching and frantic emailing pleading with people to look for my needle at their houses), I finished the rest of the hat without incident. Yay!
Except - that's supposed to be sized for a 6-months-old and it's almost big enough for my 3-year-old to wear.
I like the pattern so much, however, that I've decided to keep trying to recreate it smaller. Knitting goes well with watching Downton Abbey, so I've been rather productive on that front - I think the one I started this weekend will be a good newborn size.

A friend of mine is having a second baby - a baby doctors told her she would probably never have, which... yay! For her baby shower, I decided to get a little something off the registry and add in a few little handmade things. I always have the compulsion to give something I made, but I always doubt that it's "good enough." It's kind of silly - people are usually impressed (or pretend really well that they are) when I give them something I made... I should really get over it.
So - I made a cute little owl onesie (the shower had an owl theme, and there were tons of owly items on the registry, so I decided to go with it). I couldn't find cute owl fabric to sew something from, so I bought an iron-on transfer instead and ironed it onto a onesie. To go with that, I made a cute little pair of shorts out of some knit fabric I had in my stash. To top it off, I added a teeny pilot cap I knitted a while ago. It's mercerized cotton yarn (fair trade organic, blah blah blah), so it should be just right for a California spring baby - not too hot. Cute, no?!

This is crafting-unrelated, but cute. My most recent photo trick is to tell Noah that he CANNOT be in the photo. "NO!" I tell him. "Go over there! You can't be in this picture! What... NOAH! Get out of my way!" I get the best photos of mischievous giggles this way.

some knitting

I've been doing some knitting.

I saw this slouchy hat in the "First Fall" issue of knitty and knew I had to have/knit it. It was so much fun to work with the Noro yarn! The colors are beautiful, and the color transitions are just gorgeous. I accidentally altered the pattern a wee bit (how you do). I read "seed stitch rib" in the pattern and interpreted that to mean... what you see up there on the hat. It wasn't until much later that I saw the actual instructions in the pattern, and by then there was no way I was unraveling the whole hat just to fix a cosmetic issue.
When my hat was done, I had some yarn left over, so I made a stripey stocking cap for Noah.

He doesn't like it all that much. I'm not a huge fan of the shaping, and it is a little on the large side:

He's been playing with it, though, so perhaps he'll get used to it. Either way, I had fun making it.

catch-up

I've been having quite the week with allergies and job-related drama and PMSing, but am happy to report that I'm feeling much better today, and that I've gotten quite some crafting done. See for yourselves:

item #1: Purple Dress

I finished the pants and the hat. I decided to improve the pattern by making the hat reversible, which turned out a wee bit crumply, but mostly fine and definitely reversible.


I'm calling the whole thing a success!

item #2: Knitting
I needed something to do while watching a movie last week, so I dove into my yarn stash and taught myself to cable from this book. I had somehow thought that cable-ing was extremely difficult and only to be attempted by knitting super-heroes, but I was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was and by how well I did with it.

The yarn was an inherited left-over, so the one ball I got was all there was. The pattern I was working with is for a jacket, and since I didn't want to end up with a one-sleeved jacket or anything similarly embarrassing and frustrating, I decided to turn this first attempt into a little clutch purse, lined with satin or some other fun fabric.
Then I moved on and bought this lovely green cotton ease, which I'm very much in love with even though it's only 50% cotton. It won me over with its pretty colors and soft softness. I'm making this jacket. Cute, huh?!


It's turning out well, isn't it?!

item #3: Quilting
I have a friend who had her second baby on Tuesday. I'm making dinner for them next Sunday, so this should be done by then. So far, the progress is promising...

It's going to be a nursery wall hanging, and my plan is to quilt the two boys' names into it. Thankfully, they're both short names. :)
(individual star pictures on flickr)

item #4: boldly going to where I've never gone before
I'm getting an application for a booth at the annual local craft fair this October. Booths run upwards of $150.- and I don't have anything to sell (at this point). But I made the call!

knitting

newborn hat and mittens
Originally uploaded by girlwithfabric.

The purple dress is being a bit of a headache (the instructions are worded so strangely!), so I turned to knitting to give my brain a little rest. I've had the yarn for a while and I've been thinking about what project would be worthy of the material - it's just so gorgeous! Now I decided that instead of waiting for a special project, I'd just choose a project and make it special with the material. So I don't have a tiny recipient planned for this gift, but I had a good time making it.

yarn: Patagonia Nature Cotton
pattern: hat is from Stich'n'Bitch, mittens are my own with some inspiration from Adorable Knits for Tots

tiny mitten close-up
Originally uploaded by girlwithfabric.